Differently-abled persons have hardly found a barrier-free environment in public places. While many feel that education can be the levitation needed to break the barriers, the education institutions themselves pose a number of barriers including lack of ramp facilities, and an unfriendly environment for the differently-abled.

According to the Differently-Abled Welfare Department, there are approximately 500 differently-abled students studying in the various educational institutions in Coimbatore. All are exposed to such difficulties.

While the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act of 1995 clearly states that educational institutions should make sure that the differently-abled students have access to all the facilities, most schools and colleges barely heed to the law.

Of course, there are exceptions. Institutions, especially those run by the government have constructed ramps to help the differently-abled persons. But the problem is that most of these ramps are so steep that even normal persons find it difficult to climb them without proper handrails. Most often, the toilets are completely forgotten. The law states that the ramps should be made with a width of 1800 millimetre, and a gradient of 1:12. They should also have a double handrail measuring 800 mm wide. The ramps should have an elevation of 10 mm for every 12 mm, from beginning to the end.

According to a Coimbatore-based activist, the norms are largely violated by colleges that fail to provide even a single ramp in each building.

“The planning is very poor, and is never differently-abled-friendly. There is not even a single construction in a college that can be easily accessed by a differently-abled person,” said the activist, citing the lack of regular checks by the department for such violations.

P. Chandrasekar, District Differently-Abled Welfare Officer, however said that the department was conducting checks once in three months.